The iambic trimeter derives its name from its essential shape, which is three metrical units (hence trimeter) which are each basically iambic in form. The iambic metron has the following shape (where the x is an anceps, the - is a longum, and the u is a brevis):
Hence, reversing the current running though a wire will have the affect of reversing the direction of the magnetic force at a point some distance away from the wire. The affect that this has on the overall magnetic field depends on the shape of the wire.
The compass is showing you what direction the magnetic field is in, so you can use the right hand rule to work out whether the current is flowing north to south or south to north. There's a good diagram of the magnetic field around a wire here.